Pemex Headquarters Blast Kills 14, Injures 80, Company Says

Firefighters and workers dig for survivors after an explosion took place at the so-called B2 building adjacent to the main Pemex tower in Mexico City on Jan. 31, 2013. Photographer: Guillermo Gutierrez/AP Photo

Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- An explosion at the headquarters of
Petroleos Mexicanos in Mexico City has left 14 people dead and
80 injured, said the company, known as Pemex.

The blast took place at the so-called B2 building adjacent
to the main Pemex office, the second-tallest tower in Mexico,
the state-owned oil producer said on its Twitter account.

Mexico City-based newspaper El Universal reported on its
website that 30 people remained trapped under the debris and at
least 100 were injured, citing the nation’s Interior Minister,
Miguel Angel Osorio Chong.

Earlier, Milenio TV said 3,500 people had been evacuated.
Search parties were looking for more injured inside the
building, Deputy Interior Minister Eduardo Sanchez said in an
interview on the TV station. Rescue dogs were being used in the
search.

“The priority at this moment is to attend to the injured
and make sure those who work there are safe,” President Enrique
Pena Nieto said on his Twitter account while also confirming the
death toll. The cause of the blast is still being investigated,
his office said on its Twitter page.

Under Investigation

The state oil company said on its Twitter page that the
explosion damaged the lower floors of the B2 building. Pemex
said specialists are investigating the cause of the blast and
that any conclusion at this point is “speculation.”

The incident occurred between 3:30 p.m. and 3:45 p.m. local
time and may have been related to maintenance deficiencies of
the boilers used for power generation and air conditioning,
according to El Universal, citing comments by Moises Flores,
leader of one of Pemex’s unions.

At least a dozen ambulances were standing by outside the
headquarters and television images showed people being pulled
out of the building on stretchers.

Shattered Windows

Pemex earlier said on its Twitter account that an
electrical failure had prompted a preventive evacuation of the
headquarters’ complex.

According to images shown by Milenio TV, the building’s
windows were shattered on several stories of one side. Security
personnel surrounded the building and roped off the area
outside.

Pemex’s headquarters is located at Marina Nacional Avenue,
in Mexico City’s Miguel Hidalgo borough, a downtown district
that includes Chapultepec Park and the National Museum of
Anthropology.